Goodbye Arlington!

Monday, August 13, 2012

So, it’s really happening…

and, as is Murphy’s Law, the HVAC guy and the movers showed up at the Arlington house at the same time on Monday, August 13^th.  It was a struggle to keep the workers in the Arlington County vehicles – who were installing 4 new sidewalk corner curbs at the 4-way stop at South Quincy and South 8^th - away from the tantalizingly long curb along the front of my property line.  I sacrificed my car, the recycle bin, the trash can AND my own body in the hopes that these workers with obviously very low SAT scores would get the idea that they should park elsewhere.  As it was, one or two of them insisted on trying to squeeze in there – but they obviously did NOT realize who they were up against in claiming this valuable real estate.

When the moving van arrived I was bowled over by its size – there was enough room on that truck to hold 5 homes’ worth of furniture.  And, truth be told, I suspect that when the guys pulled away to head down to Woodbridge to get the rest of my belongings, they pulled down a power line or telephone line at the end of the nearby cul-de-sac. (It’s still lying on the ground next to the NO PARKING sign with a piece of that yellow police tape hanging from it).

So, here is what I’ve learned from my first long-distance move…

Like redoing your kitchen, a move takes longer to do than predicted; costs more than originally estimated; and has some serious limitations (no fuel containers – even if they are empty; no plants; and essentially no liquids – cleaners, etc.).  And, like a kitchen renovation, once in a lifetime is more than sufficient.

My 3-man crew worked from about 9:45 AM till 7 PM – counting the travel time from Arlington to Woodbridge.  I was exhausted just watching them, so I can only imagine how exhausted they were.  Since it was too late to start driving down to my condo in Venice, FL, I decided to crash at Tammy’s and drive down the next morning.

Here is another thing you may not realize about long-distance moving…your belongings do NOT travel solo.  They usually have the company of at least 2 or 3 other households.  So, like the yearbook business, you never know the order of loading/unloading until it happens.  And, like waiting for the cable guy or any other contractor who has a 4-hour window to show up, you NEVER get to be in the first time slot.

Tuesday, August 14^th

14.5 hour drive to Venice, FL condo – not much happening on the way down – thank God

Wednesday, August 15^th

Enough laying around and resting. 

On the way to becoming a Floridian...

So begins my version of Ferris Bueller’s Day ON:

Mon., 8/13 - movers pack up Arlington house
Tues., 8/14 - Barb drives to Venice condo
Wed., 8/15 - Barb pays an arm & leg for FL auto registration & driver's license

Nearly 1 hour and $500 later,

my car is an official resident of the sunshine state.

 

Thurs., 8/16 - Barb meets Pam (FL realtor) to check out some Sarasota, FL homes
Thurs., 8/16 - Barb enters first Sarasota house with Pam - decides immediately that this is the house for her - saves Pam the trouble of going anywhere else (a realtor’s dream)
Thurs., 8/16 - Barb consults with Pam (whose house is about 2 miles from this one) regarding an offer
Thurs., 8/16 - Barb & Pam put together an offer for $235,000 (house is listed for $259,000), which includes conveyance of 3 very cool bar stools, a dinette set (1 glass table + 4 chairs), & a very expensive washer and dryer (complete w/computer manuals an inch thick)
Thurs., 8/16 - Seller agrees to convey all the above for asking price of $239,500 (Barb & Pam shout for joy)!
Fri., 8/17 - seller & buyer sign contract. Inspection on 8/30. Closing scheduled for 9/27
Sat. 8/18 - movers arrive & unload furniture into Venice storage unit

Two things in life I could never do for a living -

move other people and clean other people's homes.

(Hope nothing's broken in this storage unit).

Sun. 8/19 - Barb drives back to Arlington
Mon. 8/20 - Cleaning company comes to clean Arlington house top to bottom
Thurs., 8/23 - Arlington, VA home closing @ 10 AM

Here's the link to my new home (pictures do not do it justice):

http://mfr.mlxchange.com/5.5.14.26728/Tools/MultiImageViewer/MediaViewerDlg.asp?Mode=2&DefaultTab=0&ShowImages=1&Address=&SysPropID=40862419&VarList=lNulA%2FrR%2FPvr9RSzu7qZB9mbHY5vIbA1Toz0HXCtC6XgLpYNJGD4WxkTzObbevNF&SiteCode=MFR

Barb celebrates the extraordinarily “fruitful” and successful week by buying an avocado tree
(only 1-3’ tall).  She tried to order a lemon tree and a lime tree, but FL law does not allow citrus plants to cross state lines.  So, I’ll have to content myself with getting one of each at a Sarasota nursery.  These will all have a place of honor near the pool, soaking up the warmth and the sun under the shelter of the screened-in lanai.
Whew!
 

Here is what I know about the Venice-Sarasota corridor…

People are so much nicer, patient, friendly and kind (I think it is the extra vitamin D from the lovely and invigorating sun).  Case in point…one of my biggest pet peeves is pumping my own gas & selecting “yes” for a receipt on the pump’s screen, only to find out that I have to go inside and request one from the harried cashier whose line of customers is the inverse to the number of cashiers – the fewer the cashiers, the longer the line.  When I entered the store after filling up for my return to VA, the cashier asked me if the pump was out of paper.  I told her I wasn’t sure but there was a message on the screen to “see the cashier” for my receipt.  Then I told her nicely about my pet peeve when it came to that.  She apologized profusely and then asked me to have either a coffee or soda on her for the inconvenience!  (Yeah, like that would ever happen in the DC metro area).

Life is slower near the Gulf – I can feel my blood pressure decreasing.  Strangely, things always seem to sort themselves out without too much energy on my part.  I needed a gym; Pam pointed out a brand new LA Fitness location, due to open September 15^th, less than 2 miles from my new home in Sarasota.  What to do for the month I’d be living in my Venice condo?  Just so happened that LA Fitness bought out Lifestyle Fitness, 1 mile away from my condo – and my membership is good for both places! Problem solved!

Putting off knee replacement for a more convenient time – and come to find Sarasota’s Doctors’ Hospital is not quite 2 miles from my new home!  I could drag myself there after the surgery, since I can’t maneuver the stick shift in my car.  Failing that, there is the SCAT bus for traveling all around Sarasota and the beaches, downtown, the cultural center and other environs.